A Frozen Battle
by yugi001
Summary: Dan and Shun are pro brawlers- the top two in the nation. But they also have a side job as models. But what happens when these two decide to have a battle during one of their shows? Shonen-ai, maybe slight or light yaoi
1. Chapter 1

Author's note: Hope you like it. It s my first fanfic, so I want to see how I ll do. I don t own anything. All rights go to whoever owns this show.

Summary:

Dan and Shun are professional brawlers-the best two in the nation. But, they re also models. What happens when they have a brawl in the middle of a show?

* * *

The Bet

Dan and Shun had just finished another modeling job. "Good work, you two." Said their manager, Melanie.

"Thanks." Dan said cheerfully. Shun nodded.

"Alright, you two don t have any more jobs until tomorrow night's show. You guys can leave any time." Melanie told them.

"Sure. Later." Dan answered, getting up. Shun followed.

When the two of them were outside, Dan asked, "Why don't you ever say anything to Melanie?"

"I don't have to, do I?" Shun replied as the two started walking towards the restaurant around the corner.

"Well no, but its kinda rude not to, you know. You can at least give her one-word answers. That's better than nothing."

Shun didn't say anything. "Or maybe you re scared of talking to her?" Dan asked, a smirk on his face.

Shun glared at him. "I don't have to talk to her if I don't want to, Dan." Shun said icily.

"Oh come on," Dan said. "She isn't that bad." They were now seated at the restaurant. They had ordered cokes and burgers.

Suddenly, Dan had an idea. 'I know how we can solve this.' "Shun, do you want to make a bet?"

Shun, interested, asked, "What's it about?"

"The two of us would have a battle at tomorrow night's show. If I win, you have to start talking to Melanie. If I lose, I won't bring it up again."

Shun smirked. "You re on."

* * *

Dan and Shun's burgers had arrived and they were eating them, talking about who was the stronger bakugan.

"Of course Drago's stronger. He has the Infinity Core, and he's at the final evolution stage." Dan said, proud of Drago.

"That's not always true Dan; Skyrus is powerful as well. It'll all come down to strategy in tomorrow's battle." Shun replied.

"You two are having a battle tomorrow?" A voice asked. Dan and Shun turned to see Julie, Marucho, Runo, and Alice standing there.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Dan asked in his usual carefree tone.

"What's up?" Runo asked, getting angry. "You two are going to battle, and you say what's up?" She was almost yelling at him. Shun sighed. This happened often, but it still wasn t pleasant to hear.

"Shun and Dan are going to battle?" An excited voice exclaimed. The six brawlers looked over to Christopher with an excited look on his face. "That is SO awesome! I'll go tell everybody!" And Christopher hurriedly exited the restaurant.

"Heh, didn t see that coming." Dan commented nonchalantly, making Runo go off on him again.

"Of COURSE you should expect something like that! You two are the best brawlers in the nation, and you re going to battle each other. Hello, it s not something you see everyday." Runo said.

Dan sighed. "Fine, fine." He told Runo getting up. "I gotta get home. My mom's expecting me and Shun for dinner."

"When did she start expecting me to come over?" Shun asked, getting up.

"When she found out we were working together." Was Dan's reply. Shun smirked, but followed Dan anyway.

R&R


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I still don t own this and this still goes to whoever created it.

The Show

Word spread around quickly about Dan and Shun's battle. Apparently, as Dan and Shun had found out later the next day, Christopher had gone to his brawling club and told them about the battle.

When Dan heard this from Christopher, he just said, Looks like we might have a full house tonight. And he laughed.

Shun nodded. You re right. But how do you think they ll react to us being models? Shun mused.

Well, if they don t like it, they don t have to watch. Dan replied, looking at his watch. I gotta go Shun; see ya tonight! Dan said as he started running off.

At Dan s house

Dan entered his house and went up to his bedroom.

Welcome back, Dan. Drago said.

You excited for tonight s battle Drago? Dan asked, knowing his partner was.

Yes. Skyrus and I rarely have the chance to battle each other. It will be most rewarding to see which one if us will become victor. Drago replied.

I know. I can t wait either. I haven t battled Shun in a while; and he s probably the only one who can win against me right me right now Dan said, putting his battle gauntlet and ability cards in his bag.

Yes, Dan. You are the best in the nation. And since Shun is the second best, he is the closest to beating you. Drago returned.

Don t you mean us Drago? Dan asked, smiling.

You re right; the two of us. Drago replied.

I m gonna grab a quick shower before we head out, Dan informed Drago before heading into the bathroom.

He s right; it is the two of us. Drago thought to himself. And that s why we re the best.

Shun s House

Shun walked into his room and sat down on his bed. Are you ready for the match tonight, Skyrus? He asked.

Yes, I am. Skyrus replied. It will be a most worthwhile battle to be in.

I agree with you; Dan and I rarely have the chance to battle. And it still becomes something big Shun replied.

It s inevitable, Shun. You decided to pursue the career of a professional brawler, and you ve gotten far. You re the second best in the nation. People are going to want to watch you because you have talent. Things they can learn from, or aspire to be. You re almost like a role model. Skyrus replied.

There was a smile on Shun s face. Nicely put, Skyrus. Now if only you could make that job a little less complicated He laughed out loud, and Skyrus joined him.

Once they had stopped laughing, Shun told Skyrus, I m going to rest a bit before the show. I ll have to go pick up Dan who ll most likely not even be close to ready.

Very well, Shun, Skyrus responded. I shall wake you in a few hours. Get some rest; you ll need it for tonight. Shun nodded and laid down. He soon drifted to sleep, anticipating what was yet to come.

3 Hours Later

Shun, wake up. Skyrus said. You still have to pick up Dan. Shun slowly sat up rubbing his eyes, still in that state between reality and dreams.

Thanks, Skyrus. He replied, yawning. He got up and went to the bathroom and splashed water on his face. Once he came out, he was more awake. He gathered his things, and then put Skyrus in his pocket.

This is only for the time being, He told Skyrus. You ll soon be in battle.

I m aware of this, Shun, Skyrus. Let us be on our way to pick up Dan.

Yea, if we don t hurry, we ll both be late, and that wouldn t be very good. Shun agreed as he walked out of his house, locking the door behind him.

Dan s House

Dan! Drago cried. Wake up! You have a show to go to, remember?

Dan sat up in his bed, rubbing his eyes. He had decided to take a nap before the show tonight. He looked at his clock; it was six twenty, and the show started at seven.

Uh-oh! Dan said, scrambling out of bed and landing on the floor.

Daniel, are you alright? Drago asked.

Yea, I m fine Drago. Dan replied, rubbing the back of his head. Just a little bump.

Very well, then. Hurry up and get ready; you have to leave soon. Drago replied, and the doorbell rang.

Who could that be? Dan said aloud as he went down to answer it. He opened the door to find Shun standing there with his gear.

Dan, He said in a calm but clearly upset tone, Hurry up before we end up late to our own show.

Dan quickly ran upstairs to change. Shun followed him inside, closing the door behind him. He waited while he heard stomping on the floor above. Shun sighed. I guess this is inevitable, too He thought to himself.

Dan came down two minutes later with his gear. Alright, I ready to go now. He smiled.

Let s go, then. Shun replied as he walked out the front door. Dan followed him, locking the door behind him.

The two walked towards the center where their show would be. On the way there, they were talking about how many people were going to be there.

I believe there s going to be a lot of brawlers there tonight. They might even match up to the number of non-brawling spectators. Dan said.

I agree with you, Shun replied. But I think there are going to be more brawlers there than non-brawlers. The chance to watch us is rare.

Yea, Dan responded, pulling the door open to the center. I m with ya there.

___________________________________________________________________________________________

R&R

The beginning of the battle is next. 


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

The Show

As Dan and Shun walked into the center, they were greeted by Melanie.

"There you two are!" She called. "The show's going to start soon, so you two better hurry up and change."

The two of them nodded and headed towards the dressing room. As they entered the room, thy took out their bakugan and put them on the counter. Then they changed into their new clothes befroe grabbing their equipment and bakugan once more.

"You ready?" Dan asked Shun.

Shin nodded. "Yes. I am."

Dan smiled. "Great! This is gonna be one of the best shows yet!" He said excitedly as the two walked up to the catwalk. Meanie smiled as she saw Dan and Shun coming.

"Are you two ready?" She asked. They nodded. "Good. I'll go tell the announcers you're ready." Melanie walked away in a brisk pace.

"Good luck, man." Dan said, turning towards Shun.

"Right," Shun replied.

And the show began.

* * *

The show was running smoothly, and they were coming upon the highlihgt of the show. Dan and Shun were wearing clothes that were made for battleing, as they had planned earlier. THe two stuck to the color of their bakugan's attribute. Dan was in a black sleeveless t-shirt with a red streak going down it. He wore complete black pants with fingereless black gloves. He was wearing red and black shoes. He had a red cloak that went down to his ankle. Shun pretty much wore the same thing, except the streak down his shirt was green, his shoes black and green, and his cloak green.

These outfits were originally Melanie's idea. She knew they were into bakugan (though that's all she knew) and decided it would be nice to let them wear that style. She was clueless as to what was about to happen.

Since Shun was the first one to go, he hid his gear in his cloak, and called over his shoulder ot Dan, "See you on the battlefield."

Dan smirked. "You're on." He waited for Shun to go to the end of the catwalk before he made his entrance. There were cheers as he entered the show once more.

At about halfway, Dan looked at the crowd and found Runo. He nodded to her, which was a signal to tell them the battle was oging to start. Runo passed this along, and all the brawlers got their gate cards ready.

As Shun walked back, and Dan moved forwards, they stopped when they were a few feet away from each other. This confised the non-brawler spectators, and they had no idea what was going on.

"All right!" Dan cried out, and there were cheers from the brawlers. Dan and Shun pushed thier cloaks out of the way to revela their. Their gauntlets were already on.

"Gauntlet Power Strike!" Dan and Shun called together. "Gate card open!" They held out their gate cards, as well as the other brawlers. There was a falsh of light, and they went to the battle zone.

There were gasps all around; Dan and Shun looked around to see that everyone, including the non-brawlers, had been transported to the battle zone.

"It seems that, due to the ampount of gate cards being opneed, that everyone at the show was transported here." Shun said. "It'll be dangerous for the non-brawlers."

"Are you saying that we should postpone our match, Shun?" Dan asked.

"No way, Dan." Shun retorted. "I've been waiting for a chance to kick your butt."

There were reporters and cameramen recording what was going on, though the two brawlers weren't paying attnetion.

Dan snorted. "Shun, do you really think you can beat me, the best in tha nation?"

"We'll find out soon enough." Shun replied.

Dan smirked. "Alright then." Dan looked around for Marucho, who was already coming towards them.

"Alright!" Marucho called, grabbing everyone's attention. "Tonight's battle is between The Ace Of Brawlers, Shun Kazami!" There were loud cheers and applaud. "And he'll be versing the champion, also known as the Prince, Dan Kuso!" There were loud cheers as well for Dan.

Dna smirked; he loved to brawl. I didn't amtter who he was up against, he always had a ball.

"Alright! Let's do this!" Dan shouted. Dan threw down a gate card.

"Bakugan Brawl!" Shun called, throwing. "Skyrus, stand!" And Skyrus came out elegantly, soaring into the air.

"Hmm, not bad, Shun." Dan said. He could hear the reporters and cameramen flipping out. He even heard one of them say roll the camera.

"You ready, Drago?" He asked his partenr.

"Of course, Dan. I'm ready to go." Drago replied earnestly.

"Sweet." Dan said. "Bakugan Brawl!" He shoted, throwing Drago out to the field. "Drago, stand!" And out Drago came, his fire tornado spinning rapidly and intensely. The crowd was cheering loud. Drago flew out into the air to match Skyrus' height.

The match had begun.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own nothing.

The Battle

The two had fought wisely and strategically. It was beginning to end the near of the battle, each of them with only 10 percent of their life force left.

"This is it," Dan said.

"Right," Drago said.

"You ready, Skyress?" Shun asked.(a/n: I just realized I was spelling Skress wrong. My bad)

"Of course," Skress replied.

"Let's do this!" Dan cried, throwing down the gate card.

"Bakugan brawl!" Shun called. "Skyress stand!" And Skyress unfurled her wings, soaring into the air again.

"Bakugan brawl!" Dan shouted. "Drago stand!" Drago came out in his fire tornado, fierce and bold.

"Ability card activate! Destruction Meteor Storm!" Shun said, inserting the ability card into the gauntlet.

"Ability card activate! Burning Dragonia!" Dan shouted, inserting his ability card into his gauntlet.

The two bakugan drove straight towards each other with poewr and determination. When they collided, there was an eplosion, and there was smoke around them. A bakugan dropped to the ground in its ball form. The smoke cleared. Drago was in the air, victorious.

There were cheers from the spectators. "All right! We won, Drago!" Dan cheered, running to his bakugan.

"Yes we did, Dan." Drago replied, turning back to his ball form. "We did."

"You were great, Skyress." Shun said, picking up his bakugan.

"Thank you, Shun," Skyress replied. She turned to Drago. "It was an excellent battle, Drago."

"Yes Skyress, it was." Drago said. "I hope we shall battle agian in the near future."

"As do I," Skyress replied.

"Great battle, man." Dan said to Shun.

"Yeah, can't wait until our next one." Shun replied. They shook hands, and the crowd cheered even louder.

"Definitley," Dan replied, smiling. He looked around. "Hey Shun, where'd everybody go?"

"What do you mean?" Shun asked. But then he looked around. No one was there, not even their bakugan.

"What happened?" Dan asked. "Where'd everyone go?" It was only the two of them in the bakugan battle space.

"This is really strange." Shun said. "I wonder if soething is happneing in New Vestroia?"

"I hope not. It was really-" Dan started, but then was suddenly moved over by Shun. "What the heck? What was that?" Dan cried.

"This just keeps on getting stranger and stranger." Shun said.

"You can say that." Dan agreed.

"I suppose we should" Shun was saying, but then was thrown on to Dan. Shun ended on top of Dan. Shun pushed himself up with his arms. He had a light blush that quickly disappeared. "Are you alright Dan?" He asked.

Dan blushed when Shun landed on top of him. He put his hand over his face to cover it up. "Yea, just hit my head a little." He lied.

Shun knew that he was lying, but couldn't figure out what it was. He got up and gave Dan, whose blush had faded away, up as well.

"What should we do, Shun?" Dan asked. "Back in Wardington, we are probably passed out or something.

"That's true," Shun replied. "Most likely our bodies oure in a coma, while our minds and souls are here."

"AHHH! This just sucks!" Dan screamed, grabbing his hair. "My mom will totlaay flip when she finds out."

Shun laughed at Dan't antics. He was amusing to watch. Dan noticed this and glared at Shun.

"Stop laughing!" He yelled. Shun kept on laughing. Dan got even madder. Dan was just about to do something about Shun's laughing when they were suddenly moved again.

Shun was thrown on top of Dan again. But this time something else happened.

Shun and Dan kissed.

____________________________________________________________________________________________ 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I sadly don't own anything.

~Recap~

Shun laughed at Dan't antics. It was amusing to watch. Dan noticed this and glared at Shun.

"Stop laughing!" He yelled. Shun kept on laughing. Dan got even madder. Dan was just about to do something about Shun's laughing when they were suddenly moved again.

Shun was thrown on top of Dan again. But this time something else happened.

Shun and Dan kissed.

Confusion

Dan didn't know what to think when he felt Shun's lips on his. His eyes got bigger as he realized what was exactly happening. Then, his face became red, getting redder and redder.

Shun, noticing this, got off of Dan. Shun, though not as bad as Dan's, still had a pretty good blush on his face. "Sorry about that," he mumbled, looking away from Dan.

"Yeah," Dan replied, though he didn't think that Shun had heard him. He sat up and put his fingers to his lips. He lightly blushed; it was his first kiss, and he had shared it with Shun.

He walked away from Shun. His heart was pounding hard, but he wasn't sure why. 'What is this feeling?' He asked himself. He glanced over his shoulder at Shun; the said person was staring into space. 'I wonder what he's thinking about right now.' Dan said to himself. He sighed; he wasn't sure about anything.

Shun watched as Dan turned away from him in the other direction. 'Why did this happen?' Shun thought, turning his head away from Dan. Shun's hand went to his lips before going back to his side.

'They were soft,' He thoguht to himself, blushing. He couldn't help but wonder as to what he was feeling inside; his chest felt tight, and he kept thinking about Dan.

What could this mean Could he actually have feelings for his rival. He didn't know what to do. He felt Dan glance at him from behind. Said persom was probably just as confused as he was.

God, could this get any worse?

Sorry this was short; its like a set-up for what's to come. Review please? 


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Don't own.

Author's Note: Sorry it took so long to get this chapter updated. It should be longer, which should be good, right? Also, I'm looking for a beta, so if anyone would be kind enough, or recommend anyone, I'd appreciate it. Happy reading.  
_

The awkwardness stayed between the two bakugan players for a while. Eventually, though, they had worked around it and were talking again, though it was still tense.

"You know," Dan suddenly said. Shun looked at him, nodding for him to continue. "I just noticed this, and I really don't know why I just thought of it now, but isn't it strange that we're not hungry here at all?" He asked. At this new piece of information, Shun became more interested.

"You're right; we haven't had the need to eat, drink, or sleep here, unless we injure ourselves to some extent." He replied, frowing slightly. "Hmm..."

The two were in deep thought about this; what exactly was happening, and why was it happening to them?

"Ah!" Dan cried, rubbing his head. "All this thinking is making my head hurt; I don't like it." He frowned.

Shun laughed; though Dan was a master of battle and strategy when it came to bakugan, but in other subjects he was pretty much stupid.

Dan's frown became more so as he saw Shun laughing a him; again. "Well, its not like you're doing much better than I am, Mr. Hot-Shot." Dan muttered, a bit more darker than he had anticipated.

Shun raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything more. The two sat there, thinking again. Shun concentrated on the sound of the wind- 'Wait,' He thought, 'the wind?' He turned Waking up, Dan had a massive headache. 'What happened?' He thought to himself, sitting up. He looked around to see Shun getting up as well. Then he noticed had something was different.

The sky, instead of being the mixture of colors that represented the attributes, it was a dark, almost black, gray. Shun frowned. 'This is not good,' he thouhgt to himself. He turned to Dan. "Hey, Dan, there's-" But he stopped in mid-sentance when he noticed the look on Dan's face. It was like he was unconscious, but was still conscious.

"Hey, are you alrihgt?" Shun asked, shaking Dan's shoulder. But Dan was unresponsive. Shun looked back at the sky, which, if it was even possible, becoming increasingly darker. Acting on natural instinct, though a small part of it was thinking things through, Shun grabbed Dan, and using his ninja skills, started to run at an angled direction, that was more or less away from the darkening sky.

Looking back over his shoulder after what seemes like twenty minutes, Shun saw that he hadn't gotten away from the dark spot in the sky, but rather the dark spot had increased its speed and mass, gaining on him quickly.

'What's going on here?' Shun asked himself. He looked at Dan, who was still in the state he was in before. 'And why is Dan like this?' Quickening his pace, shun ran further ahead, but to no avail as the winds began to blow, and he, along with Dan, was swept away.

In the air, he struggled to stay conscious, but knew that it wouldn't do him any good. Slowly, he turned his head towards Dan, and he could've sworn that Dan's eyes flashed a dull gold before he passed out.  
_

When Dan had awakened from the weird state he had been in, he felt like he had just woken up from a very deep sleep. Rubbing his eyes, he looked around, he expected to see the normal mixed attribute colors of the brawling area. But as he looked around, he took notice of the complete change of scenery.

'What the-' Dan thought to himself, looking around again. Before he was in the hazy-unconscious state, he and Shun were in the battle area for brawls. Now, they were in a place that resembled the park Dan and Shun used to and still go to.

Noticing that his best friend was besides him, he asked, "Hey Shun, you alright?" He shook his friend's shoulder gently.

Shun slowly got up, though it was a semi-slow process. He blinked, looking at Dan. "Yeah, but I have a headache from before. Where are we, anyway?" Shun asked, looking at where they were. He then turned his attention to Dna again. His eyes narrowed. "What's with the clothes? We didn't wear those in the battle."

Dan gave him a confused look. "Clothes?" He asked. He looked down and saw what Shun was talking about. He was in completely different clothes. He was now in a sleeveless vest that was red, and he didn't have a shirt on. Also, Dan had on a pair of slightly tight black pants, and black sandals, and figerless black gloves.

"You're right. Weird." Dan replied. He turned his gaze to Shun. "I wonder how it happened." He said to himself. "And what's up with you?" He asked. "Your clothes are different as well."

Looking down, Shun noticed he had on a black t-shirt, which the sleeves went to his wrists. He had on on a dark green vest, a denim vest, that was light in material. His pants, which were slightly loose, were black, and he was wearing the same fingerless gloves and sandals that Dan had.

"That's strange though," Dan commented. "Why do we have new clothes? And they're not that similar, either." Shun nodded his agreement to this, and Dan conitnued on. "And anyway, what happened to me? I remember hearing you speak for one minute, and the next thing I knew, everything went blank. When I regained consciousness, I was lying here next to you."

Shun nodded. "Well, from what I can tell you, a dak cloud suddenly appeared, and it was coming at us- fast. I tried to talk to you, but you were totally out of it. I ended up running away from the dark spot, lugging you along with me. But eventually, an incredibly strong gust of wind grabbed hold of us, and I became unconscious. Then, I woke up here." Shun finished his explanation. He decided that it would be better if he kept the part abput Dan's eyes to himself. After all, Dan didn't know what had happened, so it might be better to stay silent.

Dan remained silent. After a while, he mumbled something, though Shun didn't catch it. The two remained in silence for a while more. They would've stayed like for a longer time if not for the rumbling of Dan's stomach.

Shun glanced at Dan with a raised eyebrow, and Dan blushed. "Sorry," He said. "'Must've been from not eating all the days we've been in here."

"That's a good reason," Shun replied. "So we might as well go find something to eat." With that, he got up, and started walking East, though if it actually was East, he didn't know. Dan was quick to follow suit, and soon the two exploring the place, talking about meaningless things, something they really hadn't done in a while, despite being around each other so often.  
_

After what seemed like a couple of hours of walking, judging it from the sun in the sky (one of the strange things about where they had landed) the two came upon a large lake.

"Wow," Dan exclaimed. "What a giant lake." Dan ran up to the edge and looked in. THe water being clear, he was able to see the fish swiming around rapidly. Dan plunged his head under water and drank some of it. When he came up, he shook his head to get rid of the excess water. "Tastes good, too."

"Really?" Shun asked, curious. He put his mouth to the water, and took a sip. Dan watched this, and being the trouble-maker he can be, decided to shove Shun into the water. It was worth it to him, too, seeing Shun's eyes go wide, and becoming completely soaked.

When Shun's head came back up to the surface, he saw Dan alughing his off, tears starting to roll down his face. He sent a glare towards Dan, which made said persson laughed even harder.

Revenge in mind, Shun quickly moved towards Dan and pulled him into the water with him. He smirked as Dan's eyes went wide, a feeling of satisfaction washing over.

"Hey, what was that for?" Dan shouted, pissed.

Shun raised an eyebrow. "You did the same thing to me, didn't you?" He asked, his smirk becoming bigger.

"Why you-" Dan shouted, retaliating by kicking water into Shun's face.

It lasted for a while, the two having fun, as they used to, when they were younger. But only if it would be able to last...  
_

A fun way to end things, huh? The next chapter will be with the other brawlers. Please review!


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Sorry for the late update; things have been hectic, and I'm, unfortunately, not going to be able to update as I like. I'll try to get this chap the way I had planned- I had it written before it crashed- so bear with it. Enjoy the chap.

Looking out the window of her room at Marucho's rather large apartment, s starting to set, the colors deep in rich in their natural beauty. It had been two weeks since Dan and Shun had disappeared. At first, the brawlers had thought they were just hanging out with each other at one of their houses. But then they went to Dan's house, and found that he wasn't there. His parents were starting to become frantic; they hadn't heard from him since the morning of the show. Worried, they went to Shun's house, only to get the same answer from the servants and Shun's grandfather.

News about the disappearance of the two popular models spread like wildfire among the reporters and newscasters. Some of them had done research, apparently, on Dan and Shun, and were doing short biographies on them. Their disappearance was still on the news as an important headline, though not as bad as before.

Where could they have gone, she wondered. The last time she saw the two was when they were shaking their hands, Shun congratulating Dan. She smiled slightly at that; Dan, she knew, was embarrassed when Shun had said that to him. Though the two were oblivious about it, Runo knew the two had hidden feelings for one another. The only thing that got in the way of the two were themselves.

Runo turned as there was a soft knock at the door. She got up from her seat by the window and walked over to the door. Upon opening it, she found that Alice was standing outside, and politely waiting for the door to be opened. When it opened, she smiled at the sullen Runo.

"May I come in? She asked Runo, gesturing to her room.

"Sure," Runo replied, opening the door further to let her friend in. When Alice entered the room fully, she closed it again. Runo then returned to her former position by the window. Alice joined her, sitting opposite her. The two of them sat in silence, which wasn't awkward, but wasn't as friendly, either.

"Runo," Alice started. "What's wrong? And don't say that you're fine, because we all know that you're not. We're all worried about you."

Runo looked up to see Alice's face. It was full of concern, which made Runo sigh. She didn't necessarily like it when she made her friends worry. Looking back at the window, Runo began her explanation.

"You know that I consider us brawlers close friends, right?" She asked, looking back at Alice again. "And you guys are all really close. But… Dan, Shun and I share something different.

"No offense Alice, but it's not the same with the rest of the brawlers as it is with Dan and shun. The three of us have known each other so long, that we're really connected. And now that they're gone, it feels like I've been left behind." Tears began to fall down Runo's cheeks, silent sobs wracking her body.

Alice embraced her friend comfortingly, and Runo accepted it. So the two of them sat there as Runo let her true feelings show.

"It's alright Runo," Alice told her in a soft, understanding voice. "Just let it all out. It's better for you to share it with someone, rather than keeping it to yourself. You'll only get hurt in the process if you keep it to yourself." Runo just sniffed in response as she kept on crying.

A little while later, Runo had stopped crying. Alice offered her a few tissues with a smile. Runo accepted them, wiping away the tears that had remained.

"Thanks Alice," Runo said in a slightly hoarse voice. Alice smiled, and the two began to talk about miscellaneous things to pass the time. They were interrupted, though, when there was a knock on Runo's door.

Runo walked to the door and opened it. Outside waiting for the door to open was Marucho, with Julie coming down the hallway.

"Kato says that dinner's ready," Marucho informed her cheerfully. "We've come to pick you up., and we're going to stop by Alice's room next." Runo smiled, and looked back at Alice, who was now only a few steps away from her.

When Marucho saw her, he smiled. "Well, I guess we don't need to go pick up Alice after all. Let's go." Alice and Runo nodded, and they began their walk down to the dining room with the other two brawlers. Once again, they were talking about random things, and as they entered the dining room, they were talking about their Bakugan ranks.

"You should never underestimate someone just because they're low in rank. Take us for instance," Alice explained as she sat down in the chair that was closest to Runo. (Which wasn't really close, since we know how big Marucho's house is.) "We beat the brawlers who were in the top ten, and look where we turned out." They all nodded. Runo was in third, followed by Marucho in fourth, Julie in fifth, and Alice in sixth.

"Speaking of which," Marucho brought up. "What are we going to do about those two?" He asked. "The other brawlers are asking about them, and we need to come up with a plan to find Dan and Shun and bring them back." Marucho pushed his glasses back up before continuing. "We need to get in touch with all the brawlers."

"I see what you mean," Runo said. "How about we set up a webcam and talk to all the other brawlers?" Runo suggested, and the three agreed.

"That's exactly what I had in mind," Marucho said with a grin on his face. "So, I got us a slot on the community webcam at seven thirty tonight and sent out a notice for anyone who wants to come and join the conversation. We'll be able to stay on as long as we need to so we can make a plan." Looking at the clock, it was now half past six. "How about we have some battles while we wait?" Marucho asked, which all the female brawlers agreed to whole heartedly.

About an hour later, the four brawlers walked out of the simulator, tired, but ready to face the crowd of brawlers to form a plan. They walked into the living room where Marucho's computer screen was set up. There were four chairs, and Marucho sat at the middle chair closer to the right.

Alice, Runo and Julie followed, with Julie sitting on Marucho's right, and Runo on his left, with Alice in the chair next to her. Marucho had passed out headphones so they could all speak, and was doing the final preparations for the meeting.

"Everyone ready?" Marucho asked. He got firm nods from all three of the other brawlers. "Good." Marucho did one more sequence on his keyboard before hitting 'enter'.

As the screen logged on to the national brawler's sight, thousands (or more) of windows popped up, ready to go.

"Alright," Marucho announced to the thousands of people waiting to start. The other brawlers online ceased their talking and paid attention to him.

"Let's begin, shall we?"

Alright! It'sone at last. Once again sorry for making you wait. Plans for the next chapter will be talking about the first part of the brawler discussion, though not actually the discussion. There will be a second discussion though, where things come to light. Please review!


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